A fully polarimetric compact range operating at 524 GHz was developed for obtaining Ka-band radar cross-section (RCS) measurements on 1:16th scale-model targets. The transceiver consisted of a fast switching, stepped, continuous wave (CW), X-band synthesizer driving dual X48 transmit multiplier chains and dual X48 local oscillator multiplier chains. Software range-gating was used to reject unwanted spurious responses in the compact range. A motorized target positioning system allowed for fully automated sequencing of calibration and target measurements over a desired set of target aspect and depression angles. A flat disk and a dihedral at two seam orientations were used for both polarization and RCS calibration. Cross-polarization rejection ratios of better than 45 dB were routinely achieved. The compact range reflector consisted of a 1.5-meter diameter aluminum reflector fed from the side to produce a 0.5-meter diameter quiet zone. Targets were measured in free-space or on a variety of ground planes designed to model most typical ground surfaces. A description of this 524 GHz compact range along with 3D ISAR measurement examples are presented in this paper.

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